


The Darkness Stirred

by Zuhelle



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Angst, Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-12
Updated: 2019-02-12
Packaged: 2019-10-26 19:24:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17751998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zuhelle/pseuds/Zuhelle
Summary: After a rough training session with Sora, Ventus, and Vanitas, Roxas needs a break.But he finds himself enclosing, sitting all alone in the dark cold night.He wants to believe in himself. Believe in his heart. But the remarks he's heard throughout his few years at life have started to crawl back under his skin.His aggravation goes unnoticed, until a certain black-haired being of darkness approaches to….. console him?





	The Darkness Stirred

**Author's Note:**

> Oneshot exploring a dynamic between Roxas and Vanitas. Enjoy!

Roxas, Ventus, Sora and Vanitas were all hanging out on Destiny Island. The four of them were on the beach, training with their key blades.  
Soon twilight settled, the night now young, but cold and dark. The gang decided to take a break, catching their breath on the sand.  
Vanitas was shocked if not impressed to find out he wasn’t the only one who could summon.  
Ventus and Sora could ‘summon’ friends from other worlds with which they’ve connected their hearts to.  
But Roxas could straight up summon Nobodies. 

Nobodies were much akin to Vanitas’s Unversed, but Roxas feels no damage output from them. His Nobodies were Samurai Nobodies, higher ranking than that of Dusks.  
The trio of boys were unnerved if not excited to know Roxas could still summon and control them. His Nobodies seemed to respect him and follow his orders effortlessly.  
The training session today focused so heavily on Roxas and his abilities, the team hadn’t realized they may have gotten carried away. Summoning can take a lot of energy, after all. 

A nice warm campfire occupied their attention after the long draining fight. Vanitas was a little further away, claiming the light bothered him, but remained close as he watched Ventus reach out for it.  
“Phew, I gotta get myself some gloves. I didn’t realize it could get this cold here!”  
Sora laughed. “You’ll get used to it.” 

Riku and Kairi had been watching the boys fight, and came down with refreshments.  
“That was intense, guys!” Kairi exclaimed, handing a juice box to Sora.  
“Thanks, Kairi! Thanks, Riku! Yeah, Roxas is pretty cool.”  
Riku shrugged, arms crossed. “Roxas is your nobody after all, of course he has cool powers.” 

Out of the corner of his eye, Vanitas saw Roxas’s grip on his juice box tighten.  
Kairi looked to Ventus, smiling happily. Ventus awkwardly smiled back, looking over to his doppelgänger. “Roxas did do a pretty awesome job tonight, huh?”  
Kairi realized her mistake, and voiced her apology. “Oh! Roxas I’m so sorry. You and Ven are so similar, and in the darkness its difficult to see the differences between you two! My bad.”  
Roxas shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. You and Namine look pretty similar too.”  
Kairi giggled. “Sure. Our hair colors are different though. Ven’s hair color must have crossed over into her too. Your appearance is weirdly dominate, isn’t it?”  
Ven crossed his arms, pouting. “What’s that supposed to mean?”  
The group laughed in unison. 

Roxas was oddly silent.  
“You alright, Roxas?” Riku asked, innocent to the poor blonde’s inner turmoil.  
“Hm? Oh, yeah. I just need to get something real quick. I’ll be right back.”  
Gold eyes stared at the discarded juice box near where Roxas previously sat, only to watch said boy walk away from the scene.  
Eyelids narrowed, and Vanitas got up himself. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Roxas found a spot to sit on the other side of the island. A nice wooden patio, high above the seashore.  
He watched waves for a while. With the cold air, and the absence of light, he felt as if he was in the realm of darkness once more.  
He sighed, allowing his feet to dangle over the edge. Hands trembled slightly, as they came to a rest on his temples, and he tried to breathe. 

Footsteps snapped him from his concentration, but he refused to move and acknowledge the presence. Maybe they won’t notice him.  
Alas, he was wrong. He was deliberately followed it seems.  
“Thought you were going to get something.” 

Vanitas.  
Why of all people did it have to be Vanitas that followed him? What did he expect did get out of this?  
Fury bubbled in Roxas’s gut, bracing himself for the gloating to begin.  
“…” 

“I sense the darkness in you stirring. You can fool everyone else, but you can’t fool me, Roxy.”  
A pet name, oh great. Vanitas was trying to get him riled up. Didn’t their training leave him a little bit satisfied or exhausted?  
This guy was always trying to pick a fight, wasn’t he. 

Vanitas shoved his hands in his jacket pockets.  
“Didn’t think Sora’s Nobody would be this quiet.” 

Roxas slammed his fists down in anger, nearly denting the wood below him.  
Vanitas flinched, face surprised from the outburst.  
“Sora’s nobody, Ventus's copy, I’m so fucking sick of this!”

An outburst and a curse word? Vanitas was in a full state of shock at this point. 

“I was never supposed to exist, I’m not supposed to feel anything. This body isn’t mine, this face isn’t mine, most of the memories I have are not mine! I thought I could finally be my own person, but after seeing Ventus-“  
Vanitas finally confirmed why Roxas must have walked off, but shrugged indifferently.  
“Hey, I got Sora's face, you’re not the only one with an ugly mug. I wasn’t supposed to exist either.”  
Roxas turned to glare at the goth.  
“You at least have a piece of a heart, I have nothing. Its not fair.” 

Roxas looked away as scorching tears trailed down his cheeks.  
He sniffled, wiping his nose and crossing his arms. He must be cold away from their campfire.  
Vanitas was silent for a few moments. He really was not the type to be doing this, but… fuck it. Something about this situation…if he just left, it would be wrong.  
And leaving now when the negativity has reached its finest flavor? No way was he skipping out on this.  
The black haired teen sighed heavily, and sat down right next to Roxas. 

“The fact that you can cry means the opposite.”  
Roxas ceased his sniffling, but still allowed the salt water to stream down his face.  
“The time you had to yourself was seldom but it was still yours. You’re in an entirely new body now too. Its yours. Your experience and memories are now yours. Everything is yours.”  
Roxas looked to Vanitas, confused.  
Was Vanitas…trying to cheer him up? 

“Why do you even care? I thought you hated friends.”  
“…oh I still do.”  
Roxas was taken aback by that quick reassurance.  
Vanitas noticed Roxas’s expression, and shifted his legs, knees toward his chin allowing his elbows to rest upon them.  
“…but?” Roxas pushed, knowing Vanitas was keeping quiet about something. 

Vanitas groaned, hiding his face for a moment, only to look out towards the dark sea.  
“Sora ain’t the innocent little prince everyone makes him out to be. That kid can be dangerous. I’ve seen it. The darkness within him.”  
Roxas froze, intrigued as to where this conversation was going.  
“I see him use it in battle. Its not always intentional, but, he doesn’t suppress it. He uses it to his advantage. His friend Riku has done that too.” 

Vanitas lifted his head, looking up into the darkness of the night sky and the stars that twinkled through it.  
“I used to think companionship was just.. a light thing. But I’ve noticed lately I’m becoming more and more drawn to Sora and those around me, especially those with darkness in their hearts.”  
Roxas could not keep his eyes off Vanitas, he has never seen the black-haired teen so open before.  
“It makes me feel…not so lonely. I’m more confident in battle, more willing to put up with their light. The fact that Sora and Riku are starting to accept the darkness within them…Maybe I might be able to accept light a little more too.” 

Vanitas snapped out of his delirium to glare at Roxas.  
“You better not tell either of them this, or you are dead, you hear me?”  
Roxas laughed, forgetting for a moment he was supposed to be sad.  
Vanitas’s gaze lingered for a few seconds before finally breaking contact. 

“Roxas.”  
The strawberry-blonde noticed the tone shift and fell silent once more.  
“I sense darkness in you. My brother has none, and Sora has far less than you.”  
Roxas clenched his fists into his cargo pants, almost guilty and disturbed by this fact.  
“There’s light in you too though. The fact that you contain both, and of different levels, is proof you have a heart. A heart entirely your own.” 

More tears streamed down Roxas’s face.  
Here he was, being consoled by Vanitas. A being of darkness.  
He placed his head in his hands, and wept. He then felt a hand, firm on his shoulder, rooting him to Earth.  
Roxas wondered just how alike he and Vanitas truly were. Their memories, their darkness, their faces, their origins…everything was so alike.  
There was only so much everyone knew about the darkness. Vanitas was right. There’s more to the darkness than what it appears. Roxas could feel the darkness within himself; within Vanitas. It was if their aura was reaching out to each other, letting them know its there. There together. 

“Thanks, Vanitas.. you really-“  
“ROXAS!!!” 

Roxas and Vanitas nearly jumped out of their skin from the screams behind them.  
Two figures dashed out of the bushes and tackled Roxas backwards.  
Vanitas had leapt to his feet, key-blade drawn, only to groan in aggravated embarrassment from realizing who the eavesdroppers were.  
Roxas was still in a state of shock from hearing the sad sobs from around him.  
Sora and Ventus suddenly overcame his vision, their faces far too close for comfort. 

“Roxas!” Sora whined, followed by Ventus: “Roxas I’m so sorry!”  
Vanitas huffed and kicked the two man-children off poor Roxas. “You guys are suffocating him, let him breathe, damnit!”  
The four boys finally managed to calm down, foggy breath releasing into the chilling air.  
Roxas couldn’t bring himself to look at Sora or Ventus. His face was red with embarrassment and shame. There was a reason he didn’t want to tell these two what he was really feeling. 

“Roxas, I’ve always known you to be your own person. You know that. Riku didn’t mean what he said, he wasn’t saying it like ..like….. Roxas, you’re not my nobody anymore!”  
Ventus chimed in, his eyes sparkling with tears: “Roxas, I’m sorry- my heart attached to Sora’s, and you ended up with my face, people mistake you for me, and cause problems for you…I’m so sorry…”  
Roxas sheepishly rubbed the back of his aching head.  
“No, guys, you don’t have to apologize. I know I wasn’t intentional…”  
Vanitas stopped him before he could continue.  
“No, Roxas. You weren’t supposed to exist. But you damn well do, and you better scream your defiance out to the rest of the world.”  
Ventus and Sora looked away from Vanitas and right back to Roxas, both nodding. “Yeah!” 

“Actually, y’know...I’m…I’m actually grateful for you guys. If it weren’t for you two, I really would be just…Sora’s nobody. I wouldn’t even have a heart to call my own… I wouldn’t be here now.”  
Sora and Ventus smiled warmly for a moment, until Sora’s face seemed to go into shock.  
“Wait, Ventus…if Roxas really came from BOTH me and you…does that mean… he’s….our son?!”  
Ventus gasped in comical disbelief, and Vanitas lost his mind.  
The gothic heart of darkness was on the floor, crying his eyes out from laughter. 

Roxas must have looked like a cherry with how red his face was.  
With a goofy look on his face, Sora went in for a hug. “My son!”  
Roxas pinched Sora’s nose hard, pushing his other hand in Ventus’s face, preventing his ‘twin' from hugging him too. 

“Vanitas, could you kill these two for me? Like… right now?”  
Poor Vanitas couldn’t respond, he just could not stop the tears.  
Screw “putting up with” the light. It was delightful to have around. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Roxas was a complicated person. He knew a part of him will always be connected to Sora, Ventus, and Vanitas. But after considering everything, doesn’t it go both ways? Weren’t all of them mistaken for one another at some point? Also, what was so bad about that?  
All three of them had given Roxas so much. If it weren’t for them, he wouldn’t exist.  
He wasn’t the only one suffering an identity crisis. Look at Xion, look at Namine, and now Vanitas… it was almost comical how ironic it all was. 

They were all part of Sora. But Sora wasn’t content to just let us all be. He refused to let us stay stuck in him, as we were. Even Xion was freed.  
They were all one person, and yet they were all their own person.  
It will be a long time before Roxas can wrap his head around all this, let alone accept it.  
But the fact that they could all be there, exist together, not tightly knit into one…  
Roxas feared he may wake up from all of it, as if it was an amazing far-from reach dream. 

But day by day came, and he still woke up to the sound of laughter outside his bedroom door. Sora, Ventus, Vanitas, Axel, Xion, everyone… they were all there to greet him.  
Sora often talked about how he was like a Paopu fruit. How each piece was split off and shared with all of them.  
They may no longer be one, but their destinies and hearts are intertwined for all eternity now.  
Roxas may still have a long way to go until he figures out who he really is.  
But he is relieved to know he has many friends to support him;  
and he is relieved to know, he has his whole life ahead of him……  
…..to watch his newborn heart grow. 

 

~Fin


End file.
